Tag: review

Sometimes I have some reviews to post but they’re not quite long enough to warrant a single post, so I collate them into mini review posts like this one! This is PART 2 of this series. Enjoy 🙂

DISCLAIMER:I received free copies of both of these books in return for an honest review. All opinions are honest and my own.

The Adventures of Wilhelm: A Rat’s Tale by Maria Ritter

Young Wilhelm leaves home and travels the world. He not only discovers the value of different cultures and the importance of family and friendship, but he also overcomes obstacles with courage and cleverness. He returns home with deep respect for all creatures on this earth and a new sense of rat identity and purpose. (Goodreads.)

While I do often enjoy middle grade books, I tend to prefer middle grade books which are written in a less… simplistic fashion. By simplistic I do not mean that the writing in this book was bad because it certainly wasn’t, but the story was very obviously trying to communicate lessons through the story. And it did so by blatantly having the characters teach other characters the lessons which the author wants the reader to take from the book. This, to me, doesn’t feel like middle grade writing for 9-12 year olds, but more like older children’s fiction (5-8 years range).

I feel like books have the impact they do on people because they allow people to learn lessons more “naturally” by experiencing the emotions the book portrays. Anyone can tell you something, but only by really experiencing and understanding it can you fully believe it, which is where this story fell short.

Not only did it not have the impact it should, but the writing style left me feeling a little bit irritated and a lot like I was being either patronised or reading allowed to a younger sibling or child I was babysitting… except I was reading to myself during my lunch break at work.

That being said, if the writing style doesn’t bother you, the premise of the book is actually quite good and very thought-provoking. Although the writing style put me off enough that I could not finish the book, the actual plot of the book was fascinating and made me have some deep philosophical conversations with myself.

Windsworn by Derek Alan Siddoway

When Eva discovers a young thief hiding in her woodshed with a stolen gryphon egg, the shy, timid girl is forced to leave everything she’s ever known to become Windsworn — elite warriors who ride fierce gryphons into battle… (Goodreads.)”

Windsworn was comfortable to read. It was a good, familiar fantasy story, with some interesting world features, but generally fairly typical and familiar topics. This isn’t a bad thing, it just means the world wasn’t amazing but the book did use the familiar concepts well. It was fun and easy to read, perfect if you just want to relax for a little bit!

This means I liked the book but it wasn’t anything particularly special! Check out my rating policy for more details.

Do you want to go and read either of these books now?

Sometimes I have some reviews to post but they’re not quite long enough to warrant a single post, so I collate them into mini review posts like this one! Enjoy 🙂

DISCLAIMER:I received free copies of both of these books in return for an honest review. All opinions are honest and my own.

Sarah’s Ghost by Ben Kavaliro

SARAH’S GHOST is a supernatural thriller that will make you laugh, cry, and reel in shock. It contains terrifying suspense and multiple twists. (Goodreads.)

I struggled with connecting to the characters in this book or with feeling sympathy towards them. I found myself being unusually apathetic towards major events, simply because characters are perhaps the most important aspect in determining whether I enjoy a book and I could neither connect or enjoy the characters in this book. Perhaps they are simply too far removed from my reality or my interests, but whatever the case, I could not get in to this book because of that. I found some of the humour crude and many of the issues dealt with in the first 40% to be outside of my interest.

That being said, the writing style is engaging and for those who are more invested in the supernatural or plot aspects of the book may well have enjoyed this book, especially in the latter half which I did not read.

A Dance With Demons by Sir Richard Alexander

Two neighbouring nations have never been at peace, but become even less so now. One summons evil creatures to fight for them and the other bolsters their militia with their own people. (Goodreads.)

A Dance With Demons was fun. It wasn’t particularly revolutionary, world-changing or otherwise mind-blowingly brilliant, but it was a good, fun read which made me look forward to reading some more of the fun fantasy stuff that I have sitting on my Kindle waiting to be read when I particularly need saving from boredom.

Although at points the romances were a bit too awkward for my tastes, some of the friendships were pretty good although they could do with filling out and developing (perhaps in the next instalment?) and the personality of some of the side characters in particular was both amusing and engaging. (I particularly enjoyed Shen’s blunt logic and Rick’s sweet optimism.)

The plot really carried this book for me and it was decently fast paced, making this book an ideal boredom reliever!

I wavered between a two and a three for this one, so it’s more like a 2.5, but seeing as I don’t do half ratings for books we’re rounding down because I like to be harsh! This just means I liked the book, except for a few aspects. Check out my rating policy for more details.

TRACK 2- DNA

DNA is the title track off of this album and was also the song they performed at the AMAs in 2017.

bright, poppy sound with some EDM influence

not my preferred style of music

However, I do want to commend both V’s opening verse (0:44) for his gorgeous low voice, and Suga’s rap sections (e.g. at 2:00), which I absolutely loved.

“Our encounter is a mathematical formula, the law of religion, the ways of the universe”

DNA talks about a universe-ordained love. Despite exploring the same theme as Intro: Serendipity I found the lyrics of DNAmore cringe-worthy and cheesy, perhaps because the song lacks the simplicity and sincerity of Intro: Serendipity.

Overall, I didn’t like this song a lot simply because it’s not a style of music I enjoy listening to. However, if you are a fan of upbeat and cheesy pop with an EDM influence, then this may well be the song for you.The lyrics don’t do anything for me, but the parts which I pointed out earlier that I did really enjoy raised the rating of this song from a 1/5 to a 1.5/5.

TRACK 3- Best of Me

Best of Me is a b-side track off of this album for which The Chainsmokers helped produce the beat.

features The Chainsmokers, and the beat sounds like a Chainsmokers beat

too repetitive, cliched and predictable

really not for me

“It was raining, it was snowing, but all unhappiness stopped, you brought heaven to me”.

Best of Me is a cheesy love song.

Unfortunately, some of the lyrics in this song just irk me. For example the line “because without you there’s no me” . I hate the romanticising of love that is just so overwhelming that you forget who you are as your own person.

It is important to retain a sense of self and individuality in a relationship and, like many love songs, Best of Me seems to have fallen in to the trap of taking love and passion too far. Apart from this, it’s also a massive cliché and not at all original or interesting.

Overall, even though EDM is not my type of music, I don’t think this is a particularly good EDM song either. Additionally, after looking at the lyrics I began to dislike this song anymore, resulting in me rating it 0/5.

TRACK 4- dimple

actual melody not pleasing, don’t enjoy the interjections (e.g. at 1:55) as they break the flow of the song

“That dimple is illegal”

The lyrics are quite boring and typical of a cheesy love song. It’s also repetitive with not much variation except for two small sections, which often puts me off a song.

I don’t know whether puns like “I call you illegirl” made this song better or worse, although they are funny in a dad-joke type of way.

Overall, the song was just whatever and quite easy for me to overlook. I expect it could appeal to some people’s personal preferences as it isn’t a bad song, the sound just wasn’t for me and I’m generally not a fan of cheesy or repetitive lyrics. Hence, I give it a 1/5.

Although BTS has written many diss tracks in the past, this is the first time they’ve written one towards their fans. This song displays the kind of down-to-earth sense of humour which makes everyone fall in love with the members.

Despite my great love for the lyrics, I am only going to give it 3/5 simply because the song itself is not the most listenable. The song is great in small quantities, but if you listen to it too often you could end up with a headache!

In terms of lyrics, Suga’s verse at 1:07 is once again my favourite, with lines that are at once scathing, boastful and vulnerable. For example, the reference to Suga’s parent’s lack of support for his chosen career path, makes this song particularly special for those who are familiar with the rapper’s story.

However, generally speaking, this song lacks some of the clever word play which I so enjoyed in Cypher pt. 3 and the lyrics could have been better.

In conclusion, whilst the song itself is very good, some of the lyrics do leave something to be desired and there was little that was particularly outstanding, hence I am giving it 3/5.

TRACK 7- Go Go

Go Go is a song which criticises society, something which has become a trademark of BTS albums and sets them apart from many other artists.

hip-hop song

boasts catchy tune and overall feel-good sound

rap verses mix smoothly with the vocals

no sections stand out as particularly impressive or interesting

annoying if listen to often

One of the group’s most goofy tracks to date, this song seems playful and fun, but actually addresses the struggles of today’s youth.

This dissonance between sound and meaning is entirely intentional and is reflected in the lyrics, helping to communicate that beyond materialism and shallow phrases like “YOLO”, is a much darker and more painful truth about the hardships of being a young person in society.

RM has said: “In Korea, YOLO has become a big key word for young people because we don’t have money and it’s really hard to get a chance to earn a lot of money.” Read more on this here.

Overall, this song has an important and complex meaning, and an egaging sound, although I find it can be a little bit annoying if you listen to it often. I also think that without knowing the meaning, I would not appreciate the song as much as I do due to the repetitive chorus. This repetitiveness is intentional and helps deliver the message of the song, but in terms of listening experience it isn’t the best. Hence, I give the song 2.5/5.

TRACK 8- Outro: Her

Outro: Her features BTS’ three rappers: RM, J-Hope and Suga.

The rap line’s unit songs are usually a hit or miss for me. Not because I don’t like the rap line, because I love them, but simply because I’m not the biggest fan of rap. I like rap in songs, but I struggle to listen to a whole song of just rapping. Hence, the instrumentation becomes really important.

I found this album disappointing. There were a few good songs, but there were too many songs with sappy, cheesy lyrics and annoying or displeasing instrumentation.

Although the whole point of the album was to explore the happy, loving and exciting parts of young love, the album often felt stale and clichéd.

I would have loved to see BTS take a fresh and insightful view on happy love like they do with all of their other concepts, but the route they went feels insincere and unsatisfactory to me. The kind of love explored also felt a little bit unhealthy in some of the songs, as I mentioned previously.

In the context of the entire trilogy, it could be argued that the reason they went this route was to show how this kind of all-consuming love eventually develops into something negative (see my review for Love Yourself 轉 ‘Tear’ tomorrow), and if this is the case then it makes me like the album a bit more and has caused me to increase my rating a little bit,

Overall, this album was not the best album from BTS and I’m giving it a 1.5/5.

If you want to know what my ratings mean please refer to this. A 1.5 star album rating means I liked some of the songs, but not all, and that either the cohesiveness or variety or music quality was good. NOTE: I rate out of 5, however there are 7 levels (5,4,3,2,1,0, N/A).

Who are BTS?

BTS are a South Korean boy group who debuted in June 2013. There are seven members: RM (formerly known as Rap Monster), Jin, Suga, J-Hope, Jimin, V and Jungkook. V is also an actor and RM, Suga and J-Hope all have solo careers as well.

So that’s it for this review! I hope you enjoyed. This is the beginning of a series for the next couple of days, so watch out for my breakdown of my favourite BTS songs as well as reviews of the rest of the Love Yourself trilogy!

What did you think about this album? Let me know in the comments below!

Thank you for reading this post today! I hope you enjoyed and found some new music to listen to! Happy listening, Keira x.

If you have a blog, pop a link down below along with a comment and I’ll be sure to take a look!

If you have any requests for other reviews (be that books or music, old or new), leave me a comment below, pop me an email or go herefor more information.

Have your own music or book to submit? Take a look at my review policy.

Also make sure to follow me on Twitter to see what the new theme is each week, follow this blog so you’re notified when I next post, and add me on Spotify (I’ll add you back and we can see what sort of songs each other listen to)!

A.C.E Adventures in Wonderland is a repackage album including all of the group’s prior releasesas well as three new tracks. The album was released on the 8th of June 2018.

CACTUS and Callin’ feature all five members of the group, but due to temporary promotions with the group UNB, the maknae Chan was not able to participate in any of the other tracks. Take Me Higher features all members except Chan, whilst DESSERT and Black and Blue were unit duets.

The concept of this album wasn’t ever clearly explained and there were numerous theories flying around on Twitter. Obviously, the title is a nod to Alice in Wonderland and fairytale books can be found in some of the teaser images.

Prior to the release of this album the members had mentioned wanting to explore a variety of music styles, which they clearly accomplished in this repackaged mini album.

TRACK 1- CACTUS

CACTUSwas originally released in May 2017, it the group’s debut single and incorporates a variety of genres, including the EDM sub-genre hardstyle.

The instrumentation of this song is probably the most prominent feature of the song and is also very unique in the k-pop genre as hardstyle is a mostly unexplored genre in the industry.

Highlights of the song include the piano intro (0:03-0:15) and the beautiful clear vocals from main vocals Donghun and Chan (e.g. at 0:33).

Chan dancing to CACTUS

Jun also shows off his beautiful voice, and rappers Byeongkwan and Wow show their versatility, with both rap verses and singing parts.

The lyrics tell the story of the how A.C.E has come through their hardships to end up where they are now, with lines like:

“it doesn’t matter who bothers me, I’ll be okay, I won’t be scared”.

Overall, the meaning of the song is good and what we hear of their vocals and rapping is excellent.

However, I do wish they had more opportunities to show off their voices, as the instrumentation dominated the song.

Additionally, whilst I enjoyed the instrumentation and flow of the song overall, I would have liked to see some more variation. Hence, I give the song a rating of 3/5.

Did you like this song? If you did, check out this remix version with SPECTRUM BEAT as well as this English version in which they changed some of the lyrics and dedicated it to fans, whom they call Choice!

If you want to know what my ratings mean please refer to this. NOTE: I rate out of 5, however there are 7 levels (5,4,3,2,1,0, N/A).

TRACK 2- Callin’

Callin’ was originally released on the 18th of October 2017 and was the group’s first comeback, just one week before the members joined both The Unit and MIXNINE(survival shows).

Following their debut song, the group decided to keep a somewhat similar sound for their first comeback. Callin’ however, is a more complex and musically mature song than CACTUS.

Despite having a very similar beat drop, there is much more complexity and variety of the instrumentation in this song. I particularly loveDonghun’s softer verse at 1:32.

Not only is the instrumentation more varied, but the members have more lines in this song, allowing them to display more of their talents. Main vocal Chan shows off his unique vocal tone at 2:15 and the ad-libs from 2:55 add a complexity to the song which I very much enjoy.

A.C.E

The lyrics of Callin’ follow on from the story told by CACTUS, talking about how the members now feel ready to answer whenever the world calls on them, with lines like

“now open your eyes don’t hide anymore”

and

“anytime anywhere callin’”.

It seems a fitting continuation from CACTUS, which talked about their feelings up to their debut and how they overcame hardship, to now declare their confidence and readiness before the world.

Overall, I like how this song was connected to their previous track: it can be annoying when two songs from an artist seem very similar to each other, but in this case it works as Callin’ clearly builds on and develops the story and emotions from CACTUS.

The greater complexity and variety in this song finds me enjoying the song much more than their debut, which I already liked, so I’m giving it a 3.5/5.

If you want to know what my ratings mean please refer to this. NOTE: I rate out of 5, however there are 7 levels (5,4,3,2,1,0, N/A).

TRACK 3- BLACK AND BLUE

Now we’ve come to the first of the new tracks on the album! Black and Blue is a song by members Jun and Wow and is rumoured to have been inspired by Beauty and the Beast, which is one of my favourite fairy tales of all time.

Black and Blue has a grittier, hip-hop sound and shows how the group has begun to explore a wider variety of music genres. The song has a very unique and unusual flair as well.

One aspect of this song which I have absolutely fallen in love with is how they use their two different voices to create a sense of dialogue, for example at 0:11 through the use of interjections and then at 0:25 where the song switches back between rap and singing.

Wow and Jun

The narrator of the song talks about how their life has only “black and dark” and invites whoever they are talking to not to give up on them, saying:

“please come into my darkness, use your warmth to envelop me”.

Despite the generally strong and powerful beat and somewhat possessive lyrics, there is a somewhat unexpected emotional vulnerability, especially in the later part of the song around 2:25 where the beat mellows out and Wow says:

“I’m saying I love you please take a listen, please understand my pureness, the solace in my bleak melancholy”.

At first I must admit I wasn’t sure whether or not I liked Black and Blue. Over time I have come to enjoy how it is simple yet complicated at the same time and the mixture of melodies and chanting whispers seems to work really well.

Overall, whilst the concept isn’t particularly original, the lyrics are well-crafted and the song is engaging to listen to, so I give it a rating of 4/5.

Did you like this song? If you did, check out this fan-cam of the two performing it at a fan signing!

If you want to know what my ratings mean please refer to this. NOTE: I rate out of 5, however there are 7 levels (5,4,3,2,1,0, N/A).

TRACK 4- Take Me Higher

Take Me Higher is the title track of this repackaged album and the group’s third music video and promotional song. It features Donghun, Wow, Jun and Kim Byeongkwan.

Take Me Higher is completely different from the group’s previous title tracks and takes a chill-pop approach to summery music, marking the group’s first attempt at seasonal music and also their first non-EDM title track.

The instrumentals and the vocals compliment each other and work on the same level in this song. This doesn’t necessarily make the song any better, but it is interesting and a nice change of pace.

The instrumentation of the song is quite stripped back and includes a snapping sound and occasionally chords, later mixing in some more light percussion as well.

A.C.E after performing Take Me Higher

What the instrumental lacks in melody and tune, the vocals deliver in full. The vocals are smooth and melodic, contrasting and completing the instrumental perfectly and their high pitch helps to create a fun and sunny feeling.

The song also features a rap verse (2:31) written by group member Wow, which has a much more chill, almost R&B sound and provides a nice break in the general upbeat poppy sound of the song. This also leads into this beautiful slower section at 2:48 where Donghun and Jun really get to show off their gorgeous vocals.

For the most part, the flow of the song works really well and the rap verse and break down perfectly balance out the rest of the song so that it never feels boring or overly repetitive.

The chorus might actually be my least favourite part of the song… whilst I mostly like it a lot, there is one line (for example at 1:19) where they sing “everyday, everywhere, everything about you” and I find that the repetition of “every”breaks the flow of the song slightly. Apart from that, this song is wonderful.

This song is really a love song to the groups fans and lines such as “my choice is my life” make this perfectly clear, as their fandom name is choice. The lyricsthank the group’s fans for their love and support with lines like

“my unending gratitude, you’re the reason for my existence”.

Take Me Higher also seems to be a continuation of the group’s previous title tracks (CACTUS and Callin’), continuing to tell the story of A.C.E’s journey.

Beyond this, it is also a simple love song.

Overall, I how Take Me Higher is a summer song without being predictable! They lyrics aren’t particularly unique, but are sweet, and the song itself is catchy and pleasing to the ears so I give it a 3.5/5.

If you want to know what my ratings mean please refer to this. NOTE: I rate out of 5, however there are 7 levels (5,4,3,2,1,0, N/A).

TRACK 5- DESSERT

DESSERT is the third and final new track on this album and features members Donghun and Kim Byeongkwan.

DESSERT has a more typical summer sound with a lot of tropical house influence. I’m a bit tired of this genre, which I didn’t love to begin with, so I’m less inclined to like this song than others on the album.

The song starts off with quite a bare instrumental and slowly builds up, which helps to propel the song forwards quite successfully.

When the vocals start at 0:10 they’re quite high-pitched and have an airy quality, making them seem almost other-worldly in the best way possible.

Byeongkwan and Donghun

The song features a clear beat drop, the only of the three new tracks to do so, which isn’t too repetitive and is broken up nicely by the occasional lyric.

However, the chorus is quite repetitive, which I do not enjoy, although it does sound nice. Unfortunately, the chorus and the beat drop make up most of the song.

The highlight of the song is definitely the section around 1:30 as it provides a nice contrast from the otherwise high-pitched and upbeat song.

Although DESSERT is definitely my least favourite of the new tracks, and although it is perhaps the most simple of all songs in terms of meaning (it’s a very sweet, summery confession song), I absolutely love the lyrics.

The lyrics of this song are not only sweet in terms of emotions, but literally sweet. My mouth is watering whilst reading lines like

“you look as if you were shaking around like cotton candy”

and

“even sand fluttering through the desert is sugar powder”.

Overall, I really like how they expressed the meaning through the lyrics, and I very much like the verse in the middle of the song, but the genre and the repetitiveness of the chorus was not for me.

However, if you are a fan of tropical house music you would probably very much enjoy this song and it is all a matter or personal preference. Based on my own music tastes, this song gets a rating of 1.5/5, but someone who likes tropical house could have easily rated it at 4/5.

Did you like this song? If you did, check out this fan-cam of Donghun and Kim Byeongkwan performing it!

If you want to know what my ratings mean please refer to this. NOTE: I rate out of 5, however there are 7 levels (5,4,3,2,1,0, N/A).

TRACK 6- 5TAR (Incompletion)

5TAR (Incompletion) was previously released as a digital single by the group on the 15th of March 2018 and features all of the members except for Chan. An alternateversion of the song including Chan exists, but was not included in this album due to his contract with UNB.

5TAR (Incompletion) was the group’s first official exploration of other genres as a group and is the groups first ballad. In my opinion, it really showcases the amazing vocal talents in this group.

The vocals start soft and in a comfortable register, creating an intimate and comforting atmosphere. The vocals gently coax the song along, for example this beautiful part at 0:44. The group also experimented with harmonies, which worked really well for them as well. Later in the song, for example at 3:06, the vocals sound much more emotional, creating progression and variety.

A.C.E kissing Chan

The only part of the song which I do not like is the end part from about 3:47to 4:11 where they simply repeat “woah”. It sounds beautiful, but it’s far too repetitive for my tastes and this is something which I don’t like in any song.

The rap section around 2:03 is probably second least favourite part of the song and whilst I don’t not like it, I feel like the intensity and flow doesn’t completely match with the overall atmosphere of the song. It has grown on me overtime, but it’s still not my favourite section of the song.

The instrumentation in this song is quite stripped back and it gives a very raw and sincere feeling to the song, for example at 0:12. The instrumental changes throughout the song to fit the singing or rapping, blending really nicely together.

By looking at the lyrics, it is clear to see that the message of this song is so important and beautiful.

The group dedicated the song to their fans and have said they hope it helps Choice through difficult times in their life. It’s about not being alone anymore, about being proud of yourself and how “happiness is slowly coming your way”.

The lyrics do not urge one to stop crying and feel better, but rather to let it all out. Lines like “please don’t stop your tears” tell the listener how it’s okay to be sad, how you should let it all out and they will be there for you.

These lyrics were written by group members Jun and Donghun, making it even more special.

Overall, I love the meaning behind this song and the majority of the song is excellent, but the repetitive “woah” at the end ruins it a little bit for me, so I will give it a rating of 2/5.

If you do want to listen to the complete version of the song, you can’t currently purchase it or stream it but there is an official version on YouTube which you can watch here. (Spoiler alert: the song gets a 3 or 4 in this version.)

If you want to know what my ratings mean please refer to this. NOTE: I rate out of 5, however there are 7 levels (5,4,3,2,1,0, N/A).

Overall, I’m quite pleased with this album. Whilst there were no songs that I gave a 5, most of the songs were very good and there was a decent amount of variety of genre and sound. Although not all of the songs suited my personal preference, they were on the most part good for the genre they were.

The concept of the album wasn’t very clearly expressed, but the songs were good individually and there was some continuation through the title tracks, from CACTUS to Callin’ and finally to Take Me Higher. However, there were a few songs which I gave lower ratings and some things that I didn’t like as much. Hence, I give this album a 3/5.

If you want to know what my ratings mean please refer to this. A 3 star album rating means I liked all of the songs to some extent (1 microphone or higher) and the cohesiveness, variety and music quality is decent. NOTE: I rate out of 5, however there are 7 levels (5,4,3,2,1,0, N/A).

So that was my review for A.C.E’s newest album! I love this group with all my heart and I hope you will too.

What did you think about this album? Let me know in the comments below!

Thank you for reading this post today! I hope you enjoyed and found some new music to listen to! Happy listening, Keira x.

If you have any requests for other reviews (be that books or music, old or new), leave me a comment below, pop me an email or go herefor more information.

Have your own music or book to submit? Take a look at my review policy.

Also make sure to follow me on Twitter to see what the new theme is each week, follow this blog so you’re notified when I next post, and add me on Spotify (I’ll add you back and we can see what sort of songs each other listen to)!

If you have a blog, pop a link down below along with a comment and I’ll be sure to take a look!

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Hi! I'm Keira and I'm the author here at Headphones and Hyperboles. It's nice to meet you :) I like to read and listen to music (obviously), but I also really like sleeping, eating chocolate and going for picnics with friends.